Brad Pitt has been targeted by a vile online hoax claiming he has died following his split from Angelina Jolie.

The Fight Club actor - whose wife filed for divorce earlier this month - is the subject of a cruel prank from trolls who circulated a message on Facebook which wrongly claimed he had committed suicide last week.

A message on the social media site - which is aimed at stealing people's personal information from their accounts - appeared to be from Fox News.

The cruel hoax has been spreading online

However, any users who clicked the link received a permission request from an app wanting to access their profile.

The fake news story claimed he "shot himself in the head at a shooting range".

The 52-year-old actor was due to make an appearance at the premiere of Voyage of Time on Wednesday, but he will not be there now.

Brad won't be attending the premiere (Image: Getty)

In a statement released to Mirror Celebs, he said: “[Filmmaker] Terrence [Malick]'s Voyage of Time is an incredibly beautiful and unique experimental IMAX film for children and families chronicling the birth of time.

“I'm very grateful to be part of such a fascinating and educational project, but I'm currently focused on my family situation and don't want to distract attention away from this extraordinary film, which I encourage everyone to see.”